There is a very popular procedure that repeats itself time and time again in fashion industry. An innovative piece is launched by a brand and popularised by media. Sooner or later the market is flooded with lookalikes, many cheaper but also some at the same or slightly lower price level. So its nothing different with Dior’s iconic tribal earring – you know the one with one pearl on the earlobe and the other behind! The one Alexa Chung wore perfectly well for a Valentino dinner earlier this month.
Alexa Chung wearing a Dior tribal earring while attending a Valentino hosted dinner in NYC, pic http://vivalachung.tumblr.com
- Mise en Dior tribal earrings EUR 280.00, dior.com
Do you rememberer when I told you about the store in rue Rosiers in the Marais region of Paris? This was the first time I saw Fake Dior tribal earrings in a window display. As they were just EUR 29.00 I considered them more as a fun piece for young fashion obsessed to experiment a little. In no way they are a competing product for the real Dior thing. Soon after I recognised a lookalike on whowhatwear.com, which was described to be by designer Jarin K and available on shopbop.com. I started to wonder. This is dedicated to the serious shopper.
Jarin K’s double pearl earrings, which are available at shopbop.com look heavily inspired by Dior, pic shopbop.com
- Jarin K double pearl earrings, EUR 118.46, shopbop.com
With a price slightly less than half of the Dior double pearl earring the Jarin K style looks almost exactly identical on first view. So identical that a not so fashion savvy shopper could easily mistake them for being the brand that dresses all the celebrities!!! In the end it claims to be a designer product itself. But this is absolutely not where it stops. Amber Sceats founded her namesake jewelry brand in 2012 in Australia. Its a designer brand that has already been featured in top magazines like Vogue and is loved by celebs like Naomi Campbell and yes she has double pearl earrings too.
Amber Sceats double pearl earrings, picture https://www.pinterest.com/stylecloseup/earrings/
- Amber Sceats double pearl earrings, $89.00, ambersceats.com
Than there is Shashi, a NYC based brand, which sells via shopbop.com. They too have a silver metal finish double pearl that looks incredibly similar to Dior Tee shirt.
NYC based brand Shashi offers a version of double pearl earrings, picture https://www.pinterest.com/stylecloseup/earrings/
- Shashi double pearl earrings, $36.00, shopbop.com
So thanks to the fast pace of the industry we have choices. But these choices seem to make me more confused than happy! Is there still a sense to invest in the Dior product, which might not have superior material characteristics compared with the other designer pieces? Why does no one care for the intellectual property rights? Is the style still cool when it pops up everywhere from the super expensive to the very low?
